Andhra Pradesh: Women increasingly flying drones as remote pilots

Visakhapatnam: Women are increasingly taking up the remote pilot certificate (RPC) course and unlocking for themselves boundless opportunities available in this area, including survey mapping, asset inspection and agriculture.

Taking up the 10-day RPC course, many women are also into law enforcement, tracking smugglers and traffickers, apart from dealing with traffic using drones.

Farmers are seeking assistance from these women in the agriculture sector, for monitoring crop health, spraying fertilisers and pesticides, fundamentally making agriculture more profitable. P. Sai Lalitha, a Directorate General of Civils Aviation (DGCA)-certified pilot and trainer at R&D Lead, explained her venture into drones: "My interest in drones developed while working on IoT (Internet of Things) projects. I realised drones with integration of different sensors could be used in various applications.”

Says Vallem Pavani, an R&D engineer, "I commenced my career as a software engineer. Upon discovering drones, I realigned my career. That drones can be used in 160 sectors intrigued me. As an electronics student, I applied my expertise and core knowledge in further the use of drone technology.”

Satish Saladi, CEO of Innovation Centre for Drone Technologies, said India's ambition is to become a drone hub by 2030. For the purpose, the government has also announced numerous scholarships, which women effectively leverage, he pointed out.